As my second course comes to a close, and we start to put the finishing touches to our final pieces in readiness for our little exhibition at the Poly in Falmouth at the beginning of July, I realise just how important pottery has become to me. Whilst working full-time, I often find myself thinking about new ceramic projects, considering what glazes I would like to experiment with, and just how much I would like to commit more of my time to this new creative outlet that I have discovered a passion for.
It's easy to waste time wishing that I had discovered this new found love earlier in life, at a time when I could have studied it at college properly, without having to worry about paying the mortgage, or when I could have spent time with my uncle Frank, a man who as a young boy I loved to spend time with on the golf course, totally unaware of what interest I might also have had in the vast knowledge and experience of ceramics he gained from a lifetime working at many of the major pottery firms in Stoke, and teaching at Staffs. Poly. But there's no time for all that.
In a world that is blighted by unrest and distrust, and in a week that has witnessed both the massacre of so many innocent members of the LGBT community enjoying a night out in Orlando, and the gunning down of a young, brilliant MP who had devoted her life to humanitarian causes around the world, it is hard not to despair. Time seems too short to waste arguing and fighting, when we should all be concentrating on pursuing our interests and passions, caring for our loved ones, and doing whatever little we can to build a fairer, more honest society, in which its members can coexist peacefully. So I intend to vote to stay within a community that will support each other as well as those escaping more difficult situations for the sake of their families, do all I can to continue to look after my lovely family, and pursue my creative interest in pottery, in the hope that, one day I will manage to produce work that I'm happy with and hopefully brings some degree of enjoyment to others.
